Free Kentucky Bill of Sale Template & Generator

Kentucky Bill of Sale Requirements

Additional Forms Required in Kentucky

• TC 96-182 (Application for Kentucky Certificate of Title)

Kentucky asks for a notary — but not on the document most people expect. The bill of sale needs no notarization at all. What must be notarized is the title assignment: the seller's signature on the back of the certificate of title. Form TC 96-182, Kentucky's title application, may be required for older titles (before 2000) and is needed for out-of-state vehicles. A persistent piece of misinformation claims Kentucky eliminated title notarization a few years ago; it did not, and arriving at the county clerk with an un-notarized title means starting over.

That requirement collides with a short deadline: the title must be transferred at the county clerk within 15 days of the sale (KRS 186A.215). Since the buyer cannot file until the seller's notarized title is in hand, the two rules combine into one practical instruction: sign, notarize, and deliver everything on the day of the sale. A seller who is casual about handing over paperwork is the most common reason a Kentucky buyer misses the window.

The tax is a 6% motor vehicle usage tax, collected by the county clerk during the transfer. Kentucky does not simply accept whatever number appears on the paperwork: the tax is based on the vehicle's retail (NADA) value unless the selling price is attested in a completed and notarized Affidavit of Total Consideration (Form 71A100 or TC 96-182), and even an attested price must be at least 50% of the vehicle's trade-in value. So the document that can get you taxed on a genuinely low price is that notarized affidavit — not an un-notarized bill of sale.

Kentucky routes everything through county clerk offices rather than a state DMV network, so the title, the registration, and the tax are handled in a single visit. Bring the notarized title, proof of Kentucky insurance, valid ID, and TC 96-182 where required.

Inspections are limited: a sheriff's VIN inspection applies to vehicles arriving from another state, confirming the VIN against the ownership documents, while ordinary in-state transfers of a Kentucky-titled vehicle need no safety or emissions test. For a straightforward Kentucky-to-Kentucky private sale, the entire burden is the notary on the title and the 15-day clock — get both right and the rest is routine.